May 9th – Never Again!!

The Ohene Djan Sports Stadium (then Accra Sports Station) tragedy which took away 127 lives is the worst, most ghastly stadium disaster to have taken place in Africa. May 9th! What this date now represent MUST change our lives, our nation, our sport and our passion after a period when the whole nation were plunged into angst, pain, throbbing, indelible tears and untold sorrow.

For many, the incident has illustrated the perils of old stadiums, unprepared policing and inadequate security protocols. While stadium security has been improved in other parts of the world where disasters were once common, our officials have not sufficiently addressed the problem. We seem in the dark as we view up decisions to make for another disaster. Stadium disasters— whether they are caused by stampedes, fan violence, collapsing stadium structures or other reasons—have been an untoward part of soccer in all parts of our beloved country for over a century. I was at the Baba Yara Stadium in Kumasi to watch the local rivalry game between Kumasi Asante Kotoko and Hearts of Oak in 2008 and the scenes that rolled up right in front of my eyes were just reminiscent of a country who isn't ready to learn. Angry Kotoko fans threw plastic bottles onto the pitch and destroyed one of the gates of the stand in their match against Sporting Mirren at the Ohene Djan Stadium in 2009 in a case which clearly tells of our lackluster way to learn from debacles .

It surely isn't worth crying over split milk with regards to the May 9th incident. Whats the forward you might be tempted to ask? We must be inspired by altruistic acts of courage. We must sustain our munificence in reaching out to those affected by this tragedy. We must continue to teach the attitudes of respect, fairness and tolerance that call us to reject odium, revenge and violence. Let us rededicate ourselves to this cause. Our nation has endured trials, and we face an intricate road ahead.

Let us lead Ghana football into an unblemished age of great forbearance and tolerance.

Lets get going, Ghana!

Do We Really Need Michael Essien?

In many ways the first reaction to this title would be "that's a silly question. Of course Ghana needs Michael Essien". That for sure would be our reaction too. But our question really should read something like this "Without Michael Essien, will the wheels really fall off Ghana's African Cup campaign?"

Without a doubt any team in the world today would need Michael Essien... fully fit. However if there is ever a team that can live without the powerhouse box-to-box midfielder, who is skilled in the defensive arts, but can rip through defences just as easily, and also launch devastating missiles from long distance, that team is Ghana. World-class midfielders seem to come a dime a dozen in Ghana, and indeed most parts of Africa. There are those who have attributed this phenomenom to the popular kick-about football on the streets and sandy pitches of Africa, played with miniature goalposts that hone the dribbling and passing skills required in midfield play.

Michael Essien took time off international football at the start of the season to focus on his club line of business. The midfield dynamo had comprehensible reasons for the break as injuries on international assignment cost him one half each of the last two seasons. In the highly gung ho and big-money era of contemporary football, no player is indispensable, and it made sense for Essien to protect his bread and butter turf. However new coach Goran Stevanovic has made Essien's return a top priority raising the debate around the 'when' of the 28-year-old's return. Is Essien taking too long or should he be allowed to return when he feels ready?

Whatever the reason, Ghana has a generation of mint fresh midfielders ready to step in for Essien and grind out results. Perhaps all fall short of the lofty standards of the Chelsea ace, but as a unit woven together by the crafty Serbian Milovan Rajevac, they became a formidable bunch to crack as Burkina Faso, Angola, Nigeria and Egypt found out at the Nations Cup in January.

Bloodied in Angola, the trio of Ghana's U-20 World Cup winning side; Agyemang-Badu, Jonathan Mensah and Andre Ayew are ready to go one step further. So too the young, but lavishly talented Udinese midfielder Kwadwo Asamoah who is the latest owner of the famous Number 10 shirt (wears it absractly on the pitch) won by Ghana's greats before him like Abedi Pele and Abdul Razak.

There is also Getafe's Derek Boateng (who is being courted by Valencia to replace the departing Juan Mata), Inter Milan's Sulley Muntari (currently on-loan at Sunderland), Schakle 04's Anthony Annan 'often hailed as the new Essien', AC Milan's Kevin Prince-Boateng (despite his recent brunt with the Ghanaian fan base), Bernard Kumordzi who plays for Panannois in the Greek league who all come in with decent experience.

"The players in the side want him there because they know how well things go when he is in the side. As younger ones he does not just give inspiration, he is a great person to learn from." Agyemang Badu who plies his trade in the Serie A for Udinese said prior to the World Cup. Plavi too has insisted that he needs his experienced players back, after our heroics of Angola and at the mundial in South Africa. We accept that, but if 'Bison' does not return in time, are we going to lose sleep for Goran Stevanovic or the Ghanaian fan? No. Why should we, when waiting in the wings are a collection of little 'Bisons'. That simple!